A blog about my weight loss journey, topics I love and a sprinkle of my crazy life!

Sustainability – Sunday Thoughts

Something that has been on my mind a lot lately is all of the different weight loss and “healthy lifestyle” programs that are out there. Now let me begin by saying that whatever program you choose has to be what’s right for you and I don’t judge anyone’s personal choice. This is just me being honest and sharing what’s best for me.

What’s not a surprise is I’ve been struggling to lose weight. I feel like I’ve been in battle for the past 4.5 years-since having James aka baby #2. I’ve run the gamut during this time of different programs. From seeing a dietician that had a fat and weight loss formula – which I liked the program because it was focused on eating “real” foods to doing a few Standard Process Cleanses with supplements and protein shakes to Weight Watchers – off and on between these other programs. During all of this I never really focused on exercise. I focused on the scale and how quickly I could get that number down.

One thing I learned quickly is that I struggled drinking those shakes daily. Keeping them fresh and enjoyable was a nearly impossible for me. Now don’t get me wrong I still like a nice cold smoothie every now and again, but as a filler, not a meal. I also had a hard time keeping up with the supplement regime that some of the plans demanded to get ultimate results. I barely remember to take my thyroid medication each morning let alone a anything else!

I’ve noticed lately there is such a push for “quick and easy” plans that focus on losing weight through these “vitamin filled/nutrition packed” smoothies and shakes. Other than Weight Watchers I don’t see anything or anyone that pushes you towards eating real foods. This is why I ultimately keep coming back to Weight Watchers. Because these other programs haven’t been sustainable for me. Shoot, sometimes Weight Watchers isn’t!

Figuring out a balance for eating real foods and incorporating the right amount of daily exercise is my focus right now. I want to make meals that I can feed my whole family instead of making a bunch of different meals every night. As most moms do – I already make something special for one kiddo (which I pray ends soon), I don’t want to make separate meals for me too! Now my hubby fully supports eating healthy meals – matter of fact, he’s love it if I made more of them! But let’s face it, some nights there just isn’t enough time or enough energy to pull out the healthiest of meals. Not to mention the times you just want to treat yourself!

Working on what causes me to overeat is another factor in my diet lifestyle that I’d like to work on and NO plans (that I know of) work on that part with you. If you’re lucky enough to find a WW meeting that discusses the “real food issues”, you are a lucky one. Many of the meetings stick to the plan material for the week and recipes. There are some times that you need to talk about what made you eat that entire tub of ice cream or pack of cookies. I’ve attended Overeaters Anonymous meetings and read from my step book often, but I found the meetings to be emotionally taxing for me. I need something a little more lighthearted while dealing with my food issues.

Thanks for letting me get this all out of my head and I’ll be over here trying to figure all of this out, trying to get my body strong while fighting my food demons. Wishing everyone on this journey the very best!